The Hunt
by jiggermole
Summary: It has been eight years since Kim had to say goodbye to the Teen Titans. Now a new threat arrises in her own world. A threat that has lain dormant for five centuries. Now Kim has the chance to stop this slow poison.


I own none of these characters. The story itself is mine. It is a twisted bit uf fantasy isn't it.

The only way for me to get better is for people to tell me how to. Thanks.

Warning this is a sequel to The Bad Times. Read it enjoy I know I enjoyed writing it.

A quick apologie. My old laptop fried itself so the remainder of the prequel The Bad Times was at this moment unrecoverable. I will attempt to recover it as soon as practicable. For the mean time I will only post the

first chapter to this story. I hope you all enjoy it.

Itallics means another language.

Kim Possible ran. Not from fear. Not for an enemy. For fun. She turned her head to the right and slightly behind her to the boy falling behind. The hard packed beach sand made running good, but was still more difficult than pavement. Besides they were on the last half-mile to home and she was picking up the pace. She never asked him to come with, but he wanted to run with his mother. She wholeheartedly supported it. However, killing any benefit she got from it was not part of supporting it. "C'mon. Almost home." She told him breathlessly. "Pick it up." The cue to increase their pace.

Her son grunted an agreement, and nodded. His spiky black hair, another trait from his father, bobbing. Smiling she returned her gaze to the sand ahead. Life was good. The nanites she, Ron, and Shego had brought back with them from their jaunt to another universe, were extremely usefull. No one yet had acheived it's level of reliability. Therefore selling the plans for them had made Kim's mother extremely wealthy. Wealth that she had given equally to Ron, Shego, and her daughter.

Kim had bought a rather nice house on the beach, and invested the rest. A degree in sociology left her with little in the way of jobs so, she started teaching self defense at the local police department. Another aspect of life her son took after with prodigious ability. He was fast physically and was feircely intelligent. He absorbed knowlege from every source he could like a sponge. And with him training with his mother he was becoming quite the little scrapper. She taught him responsibility as well. He was strong, but that did not give him the right to anything. That didn't stop him from being the little eight year old on the playground that simply would not be pushed around. Kim had visited the principals office on multiple ocasions to accept the principals scolding beside her son. "No, sir. I don't teach him to beat kids up. No, sir. I will not punish him for defending himself, and yes sir I believe my son. Yes, sir. I know being a superhero doesn't mean anything. Fine sir, suspend him. Keeping him home from school will punish him real well." Kim would have laughed at the memories, but running made that hard.

Normally she would have the nanites active and she wouldn't have broken a sweat on the little ten mile run. She, however, recognized the value, and the necessity of actual hard work. Besides, the only time she got this good a work out with the nanites active was when she was sparring.

Another quarter mile to go. Ron had finally caved, and with his friend Yori's permission, had told Kim of the Yamanoichi school. And had built a dojo in the U.S. with his portion of the money. He worked for the school training the ninja based in America. With Shego's help too. They had gotten married shortly after they had returned from the alternate universe. Much to the shock of pretty much everybody. To them only a month had passed, and in their eyes she was still the theiving villan they had known. To Ron and Kim she was a valuable friend and a trusted teamate. Three years by her side fighting a war against murderous villans. The cost had been great. She had taken more than three hundred lives in that other universe. She still had nightmares of the blood that still coated her hands.

After that day, upon their return, at Bueno Nacho, Bonnie was changed. She still had her indominable spirit, and acid tounge, but the tounge was tempered. She had become good friends with Kim. Her horrid family life caused her the worst pain. She finally told her mother that she did not want to be a ballerina. That simple comment had caused her to be disowned. Bonnie Rockwaller, now Mankey, went to collage to study her own intrest. Who would have thought that she was interested, let alone good at, xenobiology. Several of her papers graced many of the scientific communities magazines. She had infact taken a job working with her father at his lab. The information of space travel she had brought back for her father was well on the way to giving the human race a bridge to the stars. Some of the basic physics had had to be reworked, but the principal was sound.

Kim stopped running and began walking the short distance to her lighted porch. Robin Possible just stopped. "Robin! You do remember what happened last time you did that right?"

He immediately stood and started walking. "Sorry, mom." Kim smiled. She never shielded him from the world. She let him make harmless mistakes. Incredibly painful cramps was one of those lessons he had learned the hard way.

"Thats okay." Kim stretched her impressive body as she walked. To everyone who had not taken the trip to the alternate universe she was twenty six. She wasn't about to argue. The only flaw on her body was the ugly scar, that spanned from her left temple, across the bridge of her nose, and ended on her right cheekbone. Other than that, most men found her very beutiful. The whole instant family effect of Robin made them run like the wind. Kim looked at her son huffing and smiling by her side. Their loss. "Ready for bed?"

"Can we fight for a bit? Then I can shower and go to bed."

Kim laughed. "Sure, lets wake up and enjoy the first day of summer vacation bruised and sore." Unlike his mother, Robin could not have the nanites. They required that the recipient be fully grown. With disasterous consequences. And unlike his mother, he did not heal bruises in a matter of hours. Which had causes a lot more questions at the principals office. It seems teachers did not believe her son when he said the bruises were from sparring with his mother.

Robin looked downcast. "Right. Tomorrow?" His face brightened.

"Tomorrow I have to work. You can come and learn though?" Kim waited hoping to scam him into saving her from hiring a babysitter.

His eyes grew wide. "Yess!"

They reached the porch and Kim sat on the bottom step looking out to sea. "Fine. That works."

Robin sat down next to her and she put her arm around him. She bent down and kissed his sweaty forhead. Her breath back, she extended her right arm and exposed the control panel for her nanites. She restored them to active service, and felt the burning in her muscles die away. Her thirst grew exponentially. She recovered the panel. "When can I get one of those?"

"When you're older. You know what will happen if you don't." Kim said.

"I'll become a dwarf." Robin said downcast.

That is when she heard the twig snap. To either side of her house was a screen of trees and foialage a hundred feet wide. Normally she wouldn't have thought twice, then she heard the footsteps. Something big, headed their way slowly. "Robin, down." He looked at her confused. "Now!" That was a tone of voice that had saved him from grievous harm more than once. He dove forward into the sand. Kim called on the tic. One of the abilities she had gained from her time in the alternate universe. The world around her continued at its normal leisurely pace, but Kim's mind began to race. To her the world slowed to a crawl, and it glowed with energy. Her mind raced, but she moved as fast as she normally would. Quickly she made her way a good ten feet out on the beach, distancing herself from her son. Among the trees faint glow she saw a massive bright white glow of energy. "Show yourself!" She pointed at it.

It was startled. It shifted and she saw three dots glow on her chest. A targeting reticle. The sound was much like a plasma cannon, but smaller. The bluish green ball of energy made it's way toward her. She sidestepped the blast, and started running forward. It, too began running for her. She watched as it pulled a long spear-like weapon out. It used it like a javeline. Kim doged this missile as well. It pulled a small disk from it's belt and with a flick of its wrist, five long blades extended from the disk. He threw it at her. She rode the tic, so normally she might have doged it, now she plucked it from the air. Lightweight and sharp as a razor. A decent weapon. One that found itself soon meeting its source. It struck the things arm causing a plume of phosphoresent green blood to splatter the sand. Kim finally collided with it. A strike to a knee, a fist to the solar plexus, and an elbow to a metal faceplate knocked out whatever it was. The camoflauge it was using failed, exposing one of the oddest things she had ever seen.

Kim drifted free of the tic. It was about seven feet tall, and made completely of muscle. The body was similar to a human with little exception. The face was covered with a mask. Kim heard the faint hiss of air and assumed it was a breathing apparatus. The entire body was covered in a fishnet material. She assumed this was the emitter for the active camoflauge it used. There was a metal breastplate, and metal bracers and anklets. The hair was fairly similar to dredlocks. Hands were clawed monstrosities along with its feet.

Kim retrieved the five bladed weapon and inspected it. She quickly found the release mechanism for it and retracted the blades. "Robin, come. Give your mom a hand." Robin came running. She handed him the spear and the disk. "Be extremely careful. The disk opens, so be careful how you touch it." Robin nodded and Kim rolled the beast onto her back in a firemans carry. Kim grunted, 'Crist, this thing has to weigh four hundred pounds.' She thought to herself.

Kim carried it into the house with Robin opening the door for her. Kim laid it out on her table, not eaven worried if it would hold. Luckily it did. Kim rushed to the kitchen and took a clean towel from the drawer and used it to wrap the bleeding arm, stopping the bright green fluid flow. That done she slid it into a chair. She removed almost everything she could from the body. The plethora of weapons she laid out on the table, including the spear and disk Robin held. She left the mask and backplate intact, for fear of killing it. On its left arm a metal block caused her to pause. She found her kimunicator and used it to scan the device. It immediately beeped an alarm. Explosives. Very powerful ones. A suicide device, in case it was ever captured. She couldn't have that could she. The scan found two metal latches which she released removing the device from its arm. "Robin go get me that bag of really thick zip ties, okay?" Robin ran off to collect the items.

Kim did a quick once over ensuring she took all of the weapons. She contemplated removing the targeting lasers as she had removed the plasma cannon, but decided it would be pointless. The beast was obviously a hunter. The bandolier of small mammal skulls told her that. She fingered the finger bone she herself wore between her breasts. Robin returned with the zipties. Kim used the tough plastic bands to bind the beast to the chair. With it's strength it would obviously destroy the chair to get free, but she felt it wouldn't.

"Why are we tying it up, mommy?" Robin asked.

"Just incase its dangerous."

In true childlike curiosity he went up to it and poked the fleshy skin. "Is it a monster?" He wasn't scared. Mommy had beaten it once, she could do it again.

"I don't know honey. I guess we'll just to have to find out." Kim said taking a seat across from it.

"I'm going to go shower." Robin began leaving.

"Don't forget to brush your teeth." She heard an escaping groan from her son.

All of the weapons were deadly. Ranging from the plasma cannon to the wickedly sharp knife. The right hand armlet had what looked like the tips of two blades exposed. She guessed like much of the other weapons that it could extend to much longer than it seems. The staff itself was much like Robin's, the father and namesake of her child. The man she had loved in the alternate universe had a staff that could extend to incredible lengths. This had only two positions. Open and closed. Closed it was a steel baton with two spear shaped sharp points. Extended it was almost six feet long. Kim shook her head at the ammount of armament.

Kim heard a faint groan from her prisoner. It started. Immediately it glanced at it's arm. It tugged on its bonds, and in fear looked at it's left arm. Noticing his device removed, it visibly sank and paled. Kim held up her hands. "I mean you no harm."

It gave a short laugh, and to Kim's amazement, spoke in her own language. It was halting and metallic like a computer, but recognizable. "The hunter becomes the hunted. Why have you not finished me?"

Kim decided it sounded male to her. "Can a warrior not respect a potentially worthy opponent?"

He sounded surprised. "Potentially!"

"You are rough. With training you could be very good."

Kim pointed the kimunicator at him. "What are you doing?" Kim glanced at the focused scan she had taken from him and nodded. She exposed the nanite control panel and uploaded the data. "You are machine!"

"I am human. I am just enhanced." One of the projects that her mother and several of the scientists at her fathers lab were involved in was using the nanites for other purposes. Such as an internal translation matrix. Using a scan of the speech center of anothers brain, the nanites in Kim's body mimicked the speech of whomever she was talking too. Kim spoke her next words in her guests language. _I am one of only a few with this enhancement._ Kim coughed. Not a simple language to speak, but she could get used to it.

_A bit slurred, but passable. We use an onboard computer built into our masks. And how do you accomplish this task._ He paused. _Can you remove these bonds? You have my word I will not attack an obviously supperior warrior._

Kim took the knife and deftly sliced through the plastic ties. He stood. Kim set the knife down. She extended her arm. _I am named Kim Possible. Yours?_

He grabbed her forearm intensely, _Beltak, unblooded hunter._

Kim sat back down as Beltak replaced his weapons on his person. _What are you doing on my planet?_

Beltak slapped the explosives in place and flipped the top up. _I am true to my word. You will have no pain. We are given strict instructions. Should we ever be captured or incapacitated on an enemy planet, we are to detonate and remove all that can tell the rest of our presence._ He pressed a button and what looked like a countdown started.

Kim scowled. _Do you have no honor. I will not have my son's life snuffed out this early. You will stop that immediately._ Kim used all of the motherly sterness she could muster.

_This is the only way to ensure we are not discovered._

Kim stood. _You have my word of honor, as a warrior much blooded, that none shall hear of your presence here._

Beltak stared at Kim's determined face for several seconds. Reluctantly he tapped a sequence into the detonator which went blank. _I will be severely punished for this._

_Only if I break my word. Now, why are you on this planet?_ Kim reseated herself.

Beltak sat across from her and reached up to his mask. He unplugged several air hoses and pulled the mask off. Large intelligent eyes greeted Kim. The mouth is what she would expect of a predator, large with sharp pointed teeth. The four spines tipped with sharp talons that flexed in and out. The fleshy spines had small flaps of skin connecting them. It looked to kim like another appendage to draw food into the mouth. Or to hold still squirming animals there. To Kim it was ugly, but she did not back down. _Like I said I am an unblooded hunter. Your species is several of the ones that are typically used to blood hunters. I have killed fourteen of your race. Tonight was the last night of the hunt. Tomorrow I will attend the ceremony of blooding and rise a blooded hunter._

Kim sighed. _I do not want your people killing my people anymore. How can I convince your people to quit using mine as sport?_

_That is not for me to decide. My master would be the one to ask._

_Than I wish to speak to him. I have to work tomorrow. I shall meet you and your master here tomorrow afternoon. Would that be acceptable to not interfere with your ceremony?_

_Yes, Kim Possible. Are you not angry at this knowlege? _

_Very._ Kim's scowl returned. _However, where is prey to question the society of hunters?_ Kim looked at Beltak with pursed lips.

_You are much wiser than many of your species Kim Possible._ Beltak spoke respectfully.

Kim sighed. _You can breath our air?_ Kim asked severely cutting the previous conversation.

_It is slightly lower in methane than I care for, but yes._ Beltak rested his arms on the table.

"He's awake!" Robin said wet hair splashing droplets of water on his pajamas as he ran for the alien. "Mom can he understand me? What's his name? What is he?" Robin asked as he cautiosly approached closer.

"Only when he has his mask on. Beltak. And I don't know." Kim fielded the questions with practiced ease. _What are you called? Your species?_

"Grandma said that was experimental. You shouldn't be using it." Robin admonished his mother.

_We are Predators. Hunters. That is what we are most commonly called. We call ourselves Predators. Is that what you wanted to know?_

_My son wanted to know._ Kim responded. "He says they call themselves Predators. Come here." Kim ordered. Reluctantly Robin walked up to his mother. Kim grapped his chin gently. "Open." Robin groaned as he opened his mouth. Kim smelled the toothpaste. She let the tic fall over her for a moment, just long enough for her to see the energy of the blooms of bacteria. "I told you not to swish the toothpaste. Thats not going to stop the dentist from pulling your teeth. Brushing well will. Do it again." Kim pointed to where Robin had come from. Kim swatted his behind causing him to rush.

Beltak had replaced his mask. "I suppose mothers are the same whatever planet they are on."

"You would hope. I have seen some bad mothers. We humans are not perfect."

"Neither are we." Beltak replied knowingly. "Where is your mate?"

Kim hissed slightly. It had been eight years, but it still hurt. "He is no longer with us. He died before Robin was born." Kim lied. Robin Sr. was as good as dead when she had said goodbye as her father had dragged her bodily back to her own universe.

"My appologies. Your son is quite strange. Why was he not scared of me?"

Kim smiled. "It is called good parenting. He really isn't affraid of anything. He feels fear, but he pushes it back to find out what is really scaring him." Kim laughed. "Or he just thought you were an extremely ugly human. I've also taught him to not judge a person by their looks."

Robin returned. Kim gave him a knowing gaze. "I swear mom. I brushed."

"Good." Kim patted his head.

"I must leave now. My master will wish to know of this. I will have to face my punishment as well." Beltak stood.

Kim looked down at Robin. "Robin? I need you to give Beltak your word that no one will know he was here."

"Aw, mom. Why he looks so cool!"

"If anyone finds out that I was here, young one, I will be severely punished, and your people will panic. It is better to have this remain secret. I will return tomorrow to talk more with your mother." Beltak explained.

Robin sighed. "Oh okay. I won't tell anyone."

Kim knelt. "Robin. Do it right."

Robin's eyes widened slightly. He knew that this was one of those times where he would actually be held to his word. "On my word no one will know you were here Beltak."

Kim ruffled his now dry hair. "Very good."

"Thank you young one." Beltak removed the disk and extended the claws with a metallic clank. He handed it hilt first to Kim. "When one is defeated in battle it is customary for the winner to have a trophy."

Kim accepted the weapon and resheathed the claws. "Thank you." Kim watched as he walked tword the back door. "And Beltak? If you leave this planet before I get my answers, I promise that it will be me who will be hunting next time your people arrive." Kim promised.

"You have my word. I cannot force my master, so I cannot promise. I shall try and convince him though." Beltak bowed as he exited. As he left he activated his active camoflage and he disapeared from sight.

"Cool. I want that." Robin said.

"You're going to bed." Kim gave a gentle shove. "Git." Robin ran off to his bedroom.

Kim gave one more look at the door and went to bed herself.

Beltak pressed the coded sequence on the camoflaged door to their ship. The door slid open silently. As soon as he entered the door shut behind him. He made his way through several well lighted passegeways as he removed his mask. The common room was in use by his three companions. _Beltak, you bring no trophies this night?_ Colran asked.

_My life is my trophy this night. I was defeated in combat this night._ Beltak responded.

_And you did not use the Promise?_ Garter asked referring to the explosive device.

_I have her word of honor she will not tell of my presence here._ Beltak sank into one of the seating benches.

Korr laughed. _You were defeated by a female human! Are you that weak?_

Beltak stood explosively. _I was not just defeated I was completely outclassed. She sensed through the camoflage. Her blows were more powerful than anything I've ever felt. She seemed to anticipate every single move I made. By the Challenger she plucked the Skitar from the air as I threw it at her. I think she could defeat the Master with little trouble._ Beltak vented the frustration on his friends.

_And did this woman convince you to not detonate? _Everyone came to their feet at the voice of T'gar, the master.

Beltak bowed his head, _Durning the attempt to hunt her she discovered me. She saw through the camoflage. She rendered me unconcious. I awoke with all of my armament removed and laid out on a table before me. She had me bound. I convinced her to undo the bonds. She obliged, confident in her abilities. Once I had the Promise in place I activated it. She knew it for what it was and demanded it be deactivated. She gave me her word of honor she would not divulge my presence. As a superior warrior, I believed her to know of honor. I deactivated the Promise._ Beltak explained.

T'gar reached over and pulled loose the cloth used to stop Beltak's wound. _It also seems she bound your wound. Why did she not kill you?_

Beltak paused before responding. _She said she had no desire to dispense with a potentally worthy opponent._ T'gar squinted at him.

_Potentially worthy? Are these the words she used?_ T'gar asked interested.

_Yes, Master T'gar. She also wishes for her people to not be considered prey._ Beltak noted the angry look in T'gar's eye. _I explained that that was not something I should be discussing. I told her that I would ask you to discuss this with her._

T'gar nodded. _Wise. At any rate this will be our last night on this planet. If we leave tomorrow, and she decides to tell anyone, she will be called insane and no one will believe her. _T'gar turned.

_Master. She made me a promise as I too was leaving. She promised that if we left without discussing the matter with her, she would be the one hunting next time our species lands on her planet._ Master T'gar stopped at Beltak's words.

_She made such a threat?_ T'gar said.

_She did, master T'gar. I am inclined to believe it._

Master T'gar waited several seconds before responding. _Perhaps we should put her back in her place. Where does this impertinent whench live?_

Beltak bowed. _I told her of the ceremony tomorrow. She says she will return from her occupation in the afternoon tomorrow. She expressed a desire to not interrupt the ceremony._

T'gar sighed. _And I suppose she was irate when you told her of your kills on this planet?_

Beltak looked surprised. _On the contrary master. She told me it was not her place as prey to question the society of a hunter._

Master T'gar was completely taken aback. _Perhaps we should actually discuss this matter with her. Enjoy the rest of the night. The hunts are closed from this time until further notice. I have work to do, so try and celebrate quietly. Tomorrow you rise blooded warriors._ There was a brief cheer at the words. Master T'gar left the room.

_What weapons did this human deamon use?_ Colran asked.

Beltak looked at him. _None. She cut me with my own weapon. I told you she is extremely powerful. My knee is still sore. _

_How did she take you down?_ Korr asked. All of his companions seemed actually interested now.

_As far as I can remember, she hit me in the knee, the chest, and her elbow knocked me out._ Beltak removed the breastplate. The hardened battle steel showed four gentile dents on its surface. _She dented battle steel. I told you her blows were powerful. And her son is training with her. I watched them as they returned from a run._

_She has a child?_ Garter asked.

_Yes, a very strong boy. Her mate is dead, though. He must have been fiercely powerful to have attracted such a powerful female._ Beltak's thoughts drifted.

Korr handed Beltak a tankard. _Forget it. Tonight we celebrate our last day as unblooded._ The two crashed tankards together. _To the Hunt._


End file.
